Spiritual Beggars
Spiritual Beggars is a stoner metal band from Halmstad, Sweden, formed by Michael Amott, who is known from Arch Enemy, Carcass and Carnage. The band is heavily influenced by 70's hard rock and incorporates elements of psychedelia into its music. Since their formation in 1992 the band has released nine studio albums and hosted three different eras over the years, represented by different vocalists. History Spice Era Spiritual Beggars was formed in 1992 by Michael Amott after his departure from Carcass. Spiritual Beggars debuted with the self-titled Spiritual Beggars in 1994 and have subsequently released albums as Michael's schedule, which also includes being a full-time member of melodic death metal band Arch Enemy, permits. The band's second album Another Way To Shine followed in 1996 and was nominated for a Swedish Grammy. The album featured artwork by the legendary artist Hans Arnold, depicting the members of the band in a fairytale world. The third album, Mantra III, saw the band adding Per Wiberg on keyboards. Spiritual Beggars toured Europe with Fu Manchu and made several festival appearances in support of the album. Their fourth album, Ad Astra, was released in 2000 and enjoyed strong sales across Europe and in Japan. The band toured heavily on their Chasing The Stars tour that followed, supporting bands such as Iron Maiden, Monster Magnet, and Queens of the Stone Age, as well as playing festivals and headlining shows in Europe and Japan. JB Era 2002 saw the release of the band's fifth studio recording, On Fire. This album featured a new line-up following the departure of original singer Christian "Spice" Sjöstrand. The replacements were Janne "JB" Christoffersson of Grand Magus, who had been recommended to Amott by a mutual friend, while Roger Nilsson joined to handle the bass. On Fire album was musically and vocally more melodic and saw the band delving deeper into 70s hard rock for inspiration. A 2003 European tour featured Spiritual Beggars alongside Clutch, Spiritu and Dozer was completed in support of the album, which was followed by a tour of Japan with Clutch as the opening act. Spiritual Beggars' sixth album, Demons, was released in Japan in March 2005 and in Europe on 20 June 2005. Demons was released in two versions – a single CD version and a two-CD version, which includes live material recorded in Japan during 2003. The touring on this record was limited to a three-date Japanese tour with Dio and a headline performance in London, UK. Carcass would also reform in 2007 with Amott on guitar, consuming a deal of free time with the group. Apollo Era In early March 2010, it was announced that Spiritual Beggars had entered the studio to record their first studio album in five years. The album featured new singer Apollo Papathanasio of Firewind and Evil Masquerade. Return To Zero was released in Europe on August 30, 2010, in Japan on August 25, 2010 and in North America on October 12, 2010. Following the release, the band played shows in Greece, Japan, Belgium, France and Finland. Eventually, Amott would leave the reunited Carcass once they chose to commit to being a band once again. Thus he chose to concentrate on Arch Enemy while maintaining activity with Spiritual Beggars. Their performance at Loud ParkFestival in Japan on October 17, 2010 was recorded and released as the Return to Live: Loud Park 2010 . Apollo's second album with Spiritual Beggars, Earth Blues, was released on April 15, 2013. The album has been noted for drawing influence from Deep Purple. Apollo's third album with the band Sunrise To Sundown saw a release on 18 March 2016 via Century Media with three singles to support the record. Discography Albums *Spiritual Beggars (1994) *Another Way to Shine (1996) *Mantra III (1998) *Ad Astra (2000) *On Fire (2002) *Demons (2005) *Return to Zero (2010) *Earth Blues (2013) *Sunrise to Sundown(2016) Splits *It's Over/Twilight Train (2001) with Grand Magus Singles *"Violet Karma" 10" (Purple Vinyl) (1998, Froghouse Records) * Diamond Under Pressure (2016) Live *Return to Live:Loud Park 2010 (2011, Trooper Entertainment) Video Releases *Live Fire (2005, SPV) Compilation Appearances *"Magic Spell" on Stahlmaster: Volume One (1996, Cream/Rough Trade Records) *"Monster Astronauts" on Burn One Up (1997, Attic Records Limited/Roadrunner Records) *"Redwood Blues" on Stoned Revolution: The Ultimate Trip (1998, Drunken Maria Records/Rough *Trade Records) *"Mr. White" on Bastards Will Pay: A Tribute to Trouble (1999, Freedoom Records) Members Current Members *Michael Amott - Guitar (1992-present, founding member) *Apollo Papathanasio - Vocals (2010-present) *Sharlee D'Angelo - Bass (2005-present) *Per Wiberg - Keyboard (1998-present) *Ludwig Witt - Drums (1993-present) Past Members *Christian "Spice" Sjöstrand – Vocals, bass (1992–2001) *Roger Nilsson – Bass (2002–2004) *Janne "JB" Christoffersson – Vocals (2002–2010) Touring/Session Members *Stefan Isebring – percussion, hurdy-gurdy (1998, also appeared on Mantra III) Reviews External Links *Spiritual Beggars Official Website *Spiritual Beggars Facebook *Spritual Beggars Twitter References Category:Band Category:Spiritual Beggars Category:Halmstad Category:Sweden Category:Stoner Metal Category:Stoner Rock Category:Hard Rock Category:Michael Amott Category:JB